2012 NFL Draft Game: Play The Draft

So how many times over the past few years have you been watching ESPN on draft weekend and thought? ‘You know, Mel Kiper doesn’t know anything! I could do his job!’ Well now its time to put your draft skills where your mouth is.

We’re inviting our readers to compete against Mel, and the team here at BuffaloBillsDraft.com to see who knows the most about the value each prospect in the 2012 Draft class holds. Best part is that its free to sign up and as an added bonus you get to show plenty of Pats fans that they don’t know talent. Both Buffalo Bills Draft and NE Patriots Draft are in the same league. So you’ll not only be competing v. our writers and Mel Kiper but also the writers and readers over at NEPD.

The game is called First Round Exchange, and with the help of Mel Kiper Jr., they have created a game that treats the NFL Draft like the stock market. They have brought us here at BuffaloBillsDraft.com as analysts and have invited our readers to participate as well

Read on for how to play and instructions for signing up.

You’re given $12,000 to spend and buy up to fifteen players. What you’re looking for is players that you like more than everyone else, and think will be drafted higher than the their consensus ranking.

For example, I have OT Bobby Massie as my 15th ranked prospect. According to Play The Draft, Massie is the 21st overall rated prospect, so it would make sense for me to spend the $739 to “buy” him.

Players will rise and fall based on expert rankings, so it’s possible that players you used to be “high” on, you should possibly now sell if they’ve met your perceived value. Players will be worth more money the higher they get in the overall rankings, so just like the stock market, it makes sense to buy low and sell high.

During the draft, you’ll be able to see how well you’ve done based on where each player is drafted. For example Coples is currently the 10th highest valued player. So if you’ve bought Coples at $2,174 when he’s ranked 10th and he winds up going 6th, he’ll finish worth around $2,720, so you’ve “made” ~$550.

One key thing to know, is that you’re only given value for players if they’re selected in the first three rounds. Any player taken after the third round is valued at the minimum $425.